On September 4, 2025, the K.P. Sharma Oli government banned up to 26 social media sites, including YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and X (previously Twitter), claiming that they had not complied with Nepal’s registration criteria by the deadline.
The Ministry of Communications and Information Technology announced in a public notice that it has directed the Nepal Telecommunication Authority to deactivate any social media platforms that are not registered until they are. Following several petitions, the government once more gave social media companies seven days to register in Nepal on August 28. That deadline ended on the evening of September 3.
Stern Notice to Social Media Platforms
The Ministry’s representative, Gajendra Thakur, stated on the afternoon of September 3 that the government hoped social networking companies would contact them before midnight. He claimed that the government would take appropriate action if they didn’t.
At a meeting held at the Ministry on 4 September, it was decided to impose the ban because no one came forward. Supporters of free speech have criticised the action, claiming it is more about censoring opposing views than it is about regulation. They think that many social media businesses may have refused to register because they felt the government’s registration requirements, which include strict inspection and control procedures, were unreasonable and offensive.
Ban Hampering Nepal’s Image: Acharya
The Centre for Media Research’s director, Ujjwal Acharya, referred to the decision as shortsighted and claimed that the ban will harm Nepal’s reputation as a democratic country. According to Acharya, the government made the choice without considering how it would affect regular people. This choice will damage Nepal’s democratic image for years to come and will leave a bad impression on the world stage.
A recent Supreme Court decision and the government’s own Directives Relating to the Regulation for Usage of Social Media served as the foundation for the decision to ban the websites. The highest court in Nepal ruled two weeks ago that social media and internet platforms, whether they are native or foreign, must be required to register with a relevant government.
However, Mr Acharya contends that the government’s impractical requirements are the reason platforms have not complied. He claims that the Nepali government’s suggested oversight and control procedures are just too invasive. TikTok was prohibited by the then-Pushpa Kamal Dahal government in November 2023, which sparked intense outrage.
Oli Government in the Firing line
The Oli government has been criticised for being more retaliatory towards online critics since it took office almost 14 months ago. Its attempt to pass a new social media regulation bill earlier this year was also strongly opposed. Experts cautioned that the government was trying to regulate almost all internet activity under the pretence of regulation.
In the most recent instance, the government had already issued four registration requests to platforms, each with a comparable deadline. However, only the Ministry made those prior requests. This time, a Cabinet decision issued the registration directive. Social media users blasted the ban as soon as it was announced, calling it foolish, injudicious, and an example of the government shooting itself in the foot. Many users posted what they claimed to be their final remarks since they thought the platforms would fall down at any time.
Quick
Shots
•Platforms failed to comply with
Nepal’s mandatory registration rules by the September 3 deadline.
•Ministry of Communications ordered
ISPs to block unregistered platforms; says it’s about regulation and
compliance.
•Free speech advocates claim the move
is political censorship rather than regulation.
•Ujjwal Acharya warns ban will damage
Nepal’s democratic image and global reputation.
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The importance of “4C Education,” which consists of “communication,” “collaboration,” “creative thinking,” and “creativity,” is vital because it helps children achieve their full potential. The aim of this educational policy is to develop proactive employees who can function both independently and collaboratively.
A group of engineers and artists wanted a change in the age old educational system in Nepal and came up with a very creative and much-needed idea to reform the system. Karkhana was founded by this community with the aim of establishing a makerspace. This quickly developed into a catalyst for an environment that inspires children to explore, invent, and collaborate rather than memorize their syllabus in the “traditional” way.
Karkhana is the owner and operator of a makerspace and education business that aims to provide a truly unique learning experience. Teachers, developers, designers, artists, and scientists transform the classroom into a lab for exploration, designing workshops to teach concepts from Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics contemporaneously with providing students with 21st-century skills such as Critical Thinking, Creativity, Collaboration, and Communication.
They are a co-curricular after-school program with a distinctive learning style. The company’s strategy is to teach their students one important lesson: the world is malleable. Karkhana serves 5,500 students annually through co-curricular activities in schools and after-school enrichment programs in 20 schools.
Schools and other organizations in Nepal are established with the purpose of fixing the floor i.e. just the bare minimum. We, on the other hand, are trying to raise the ceiling – we want to set a benchmark and influence others to do better.
They are currently reaching out to 2600 students every week across 80 classes delivered to 17 local schools. BeeCreative and the Karkhana Innovator’s Club are two separate initiatives.
Karkhana – Founder and History
Sakar Pudasaini, Sunoj Shrestha, Suresh Ghimire and Pavitra Gautam founded Karkhana, the education company based in Nepal.
Sakar was a part of a month-long event in 2012 where he discussed the need for “makers rooms” in Kathmandu. At the same time, members of the Robotics Association Nepal were holding robotics-related sessions and activities. At the Google Developer Group Bar Camp, he met Sunoj Shrestha, Pavitra Gautam, and Suresh Ghimire and thought of merge-up.
The Karkhana’ s Team
The first few years were difficult, and their company did not succeed. They started a product design business, focusing on developing new products to sell to potential customers, after realizing that Nepal lacked any and deciding to be the first to contribute in that area. That’s how they came up with Karkhana as a team.
They began as a product design firm but quickly discovered that due to a lack of automation, mass production was impossible. They also lacked the human capital to do so because people lacked the motivation or mindset to try something different. That’s when the team realized the ecosystem required more creativity and tinkering! They came to the conclusion that the education sector appeared to be a wide enough space for their concept’s long-term viability, growth, and development.
They began with robotics lessons. Then they decided that they needed to extend and redesign. As a result, they began bringing in experts and specialists from different fields, such as farming and wildlife, to share their expertise. The classes developed over time as a result of the accumulation of ideas.
Karkhana – Logo
Karkhana’ s Logo
Karkhana – Mission and Vision
Karkhana’ s mission statement says, “We created Karkhana to nurture a spirit of innovating locally so as to make a global impact. We want to empower people with the skills & attitudes that will help them build their future and the future of their community.”
According to the company, they would accomplish their goal by demonstrating to children how to use science and technology in innovative ways. Children can discover how science and technology will assist them in resolving issues in their own lives, their communities, their countries, and the world at large.
Karkhana makerspace was established in 2014 with a ten thousand euro investment from the co-founders. They then rented the space, began purchasing materials for the workshops, and completed the rest by hand. The business model is focused on the children attending the workshops paying a monthly membership fee.
They continue to invest in modern equipment (including a laser cutting machine), tools, and the recruitment and training of new teachers. Human Capital (salaries/training) receives 40% of the budget, while classes resources (materials) receive 15%, operating costs receive 13%, sales and marketing receive 13%, and rent receives 7%.
Karkhana – Growth
“Actually, one passerby found our concept interesting and encouraged us to have a program. He even got his own kid as well as a few others for the after-school program. After that, quite a few more students came in on referral. Then, a few schools heard about us and wanted to collaborate, and they were even willing to pay. That is how we stumbled upon our selling point. We went from 5 students to 3500!”, said Pavitra.
They’ve been creating innovative educational content and hosting fun workshops for kids aged 8 to 14 in their space and in schools for the past two years to help them explore the power of fabrication and imagination. They taught 1400 students per week in 2016, and by the end of 2017, they plan to be teaching +3000 students per week! Karkhana is a for-profit corporation. They also founded Kharkana Samuha, a non-profit organization in 2016, to organize workshops for children from underserved communities.
They are engineering graduates who never imagined themselves as teachers, according to Sarkar. They had difficulty communicating with the students because they didn’t know how to maintain their interest and focus. They had no idea how to run a classroom or create lesson plans. They needed to seek advice from a few mentors in order to succeed.
The most difficult task they faced was finding good people and teachers. They also follow the national curriculum; schools need 100 percent enrollment, so it must be mandatory for all students. And though their children seem to be really involved, some parents are hesitant to do so. Finding a balance between versatility and structure is a challenge for them as an organization.
Karkhana – Future Plans
Despite their slow progress in the educational sector, the Karkhana founders believe they still face a larger problem. Four million children in the United States currently lack access to a decent education. Slowly but steadily, they want to change that. In the future, they hope to reach out to more than 10,000 children, up from the current number of 2600.
We are seeing some natural limitation in growth here at Kathmandu. So, one strategy is to move on to more cities. The other strategy is to collaborate with teachers to empower them to run their own classes. This way we can design the lesson and kits for the teachers and the program will be self-sustaining, said Pavitra Gautam.
Karkhana – FAQs
What does Karkhana do?
Karkhana is the owner and operator of a makerspace and education business that aims to provide a unique learning experience.
Who founded Karkhana?
Sakar Pudasaini, Sunoj Shrestha, Suresh Ghimire and Pavitra Gautam founded Karkhana, the education company based in Nepal.
The government of India brought in a lot of changes in the FDI norms. This was done keeping in mind the nation’s condition amidst the global pandemic. The main aim was to prevent foreign companies from opportunistic take overs of Indian firms.
The recent investments made their point on curbing Chinese investments in Indian Firms. As per the new FDI norm any country that shares a land border with India will no longer be able to use the automatic route in the FDI. The companies who would like to invest must seek government’s clearance over any investment proposal.
The changes were brought in late April earlier this year. The main aim was to stop Chinese Investors from their predatory behavior. These rules would be applied on countries such as Bhutan, Pakistan, Nepal, Myanmar, Afghanistan. But there is a very small flow of investments from these countries. So, this is evident that the norms are to keep an eye on China for any signs of exploitative behavior.
All this was not done on any sudden decision. The reason behind all this is form the year 2015. Since 2015 China has increased its investment in India. This looks like a very strategic move. According to a report by the DPIIT, Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade. The total amount of FDI that has flown from China to India is around $1.8 Billion. All this within a 2015-2019. In the year 2015 itself there was an investment of total $494.75 million.
The industry that has particularly caught the eye of the Chinese investor is the Indian Automobile Industry. Between the same period that is from 2015-2019. The automobile Industry has seen a total investment of $876.30 million. The electrical equipment manufacturing along with the book printing sectors have also seen a hug inflow. All this FDI flow confirms the foothold of Chinese investors in the nation.
Yearly FDI Inflows (in USD Million)
The companies that would be affected the most would be the companies like BigBasket, Paytm and Ola. These companies are just collateral damages of the governments new rules to protect minor companies. The online Grocery vendor Gofers along with the digital payment app and OLA have received millions of dollars as investment from Chinese Investors.
The new norms would effect the fresh funds that were supposed to role in.
“The new FDI guidelines essentially imply Chinese capital would require prior government approval. In effect, given the uncertainty around approval, startups will shy away from Chinese capital. In the immediate future, this could impact PhonePe and potentially Paytm at a later date,” said Ashneer Grover, CEO and co-founder, BharatPe
According to a report by the Think Tank Gateway House a total of $4 Billion has been invested in Indian startups by the Chinese tech investors. Another report said that 18 of India’s 30 Unicorn Startups are funded by Chinese Investors.
BigBasket the online grocery store got a $50 million funding from Alibaba. This investment rolled in when the company was facing its own share of problems in the lockdown. But these new FDI norms would hit the company. BigBasket would face troubles for its capital infusions with Alibaba. BigBasket would now have to search other places to reach its requirements on the basis of investments.
Paytm raised a huge sum of $1 Billion from the Soft Bank in Japan and from Ant Financial from Alibaba. Paytm faces tough competition from Google and PhonePe(owned by Walmart). To fight these competitors Paytm has to be always on the edge of innovation . But the company would face a major fallback after the new norms. Alibaba is the largest share holder in the company. This would indeed affect the digital payments platform.
Alibaba’s Ant Financial has been an investor in Zomato since the year 2018. Ant Financial invested $210 million in the food delivery app. It go a stake of 14.7%. By this Ant Financial became the company’s Largest investor. This stake was raised to 23%. According to news reports this was going to be increased earlier this year. But between that the Indian government revised its FDI norms.
18 of the 30 Unicorn Startups who are funded by Chinese Investors would face a lot of troubles. The move of making changes in the FDI norms is to hurt the Chinese Investors. But this would hurt the unicorn startups. This move has put many jobs on risk.
